For fans of the Hunger Games and Iron Flame, this book will surely become a hit as the latest in the romantasy genre which is so popular now. This may look like a long book, but it goes by very quickly. The protagonist, Wren, is Modified, basically meaning she has psychic powers, and lives with those in secret, with her "Uncle Jim." When Jim is discovered and killed, the army believes she is innocent, and brings her into their elite training program, while she spies for the resistance. Of course, she falls for her very handsome instructor. No major surprises, but it's a fun book to read, and I look forward to future books in this series.

I was a little apprehensive to start this one as I’d heard mixed reviews. I will admit it took me about 100 pages to really get into the story, I felt there was a lot of information to take in over the initial few chapters but once I got my head around the world I began to race through each chapter.

It was very similar to Fourth Wing in some ways and even some of the characters felt like they’d been pulled from the pages of Yarros’ novel. Some of the dialogue used in the romantic scenes felt a bit jarring to me but I understand that the author was trying to create a sense of emotional disconnect between the two characters. I loved Kaine as a side character and at times almost wished that he had been the main romantic interest however, his and Wren’s friendship was very enjoyable for me. Overall I feel like this book was really good fun and I would definitely pick up the next book in the series.

This was really a fun read for me. The world was cinematic, the plot kept moving, and I never knew if I should be rooting for or against Wren. It's about all a girl could ask for in terms of dystopia, romance, and all of the in between.

Ultimately, I was entertained as I read. I really like the premise and the psychic abilities thing! Unfortunately, I think there was a lot of potential in the idea that just wasn’t quite reached.

The main criticisms I saw were:
1. That the writing style is juvenile/simplistic
and
2. That it’s advertised as a dystopian, but it really isn’t actually dystopian.

While it’s guilty on both counts I don’t hold these things against authors ever. Point 1 is just up to the reader’s preferences. All writing styles are valid!

As for point 2, the marketing was 100% done wrong. I’ll preface this by saying, I don’t personally feel that “dystopian” things always have to have some deep or extensive political commentary. But this was definitely a romance with a dystopian backdrop/setting. Which is fine that that’s what it is, the beef is that that’s not what was advertised. I personally saw “Katniss for adults”, which brings a pretty strong image to mind, and Silver Elite does not fit that bill. In general, I think all comp titling should be done away with because I’ve never once read anything where the comp titling marketing I saw described the work properly…but that’s a conversation for another day.

Where it fell short for me is the romance scenes didn’t quite land. I’m not sure if it’s how they were written, or if I just wasn’t invested enough in the couple itself.

Finally, what irked me most was every single problem the FMC or her loved ones dealt with was a direct consequence to her stupid choices or rule breaking. I understand there needs to be an inciting incident to kick off the story, but when a character continues to make ridiculous choices over and over again, and never learns from their past mistakes, that’s when I start losing my mind.

Ultimately, I’m not particularly invested in the characters as people or their relationships, but I AM invested in the story itself. I’m curious what direction it is headed for, so I will still be reading the sequel! :)

Silver Elite follows a familiar fantasy war college formula that feels like it’s been done many times before. While the premise has potential, the story doesn’t bring much new to the table. The characters and world-building are decent, but overall it reads like another predictable entry in the genre.

4.5 STARS

I REALLY LIKED THIS BOOK!!

Such a vibe!! Now don’t go into this book thinking it will be a literary masterpiece because spoiler, it won’t be. But it will be fun. It will keep you on your toes with all the action and adventure in it. It will keep you up late, not wanting to put the book down, I know I didn’t want to put it down. And now I can’t wait for next book.

Un libro che viene presentato come un distopico, ma con scene spici non può essere privo di elementi critici verso temi politici e sociali. Praticamente per fare spazio alle scene spicy e stata tolta ogni traccia di politica.
La protagonista è detestabile perché è perfetta in tutto, ma non pensa mai prima di agire e continuamente fa scelte discutibili che portano a casini vari. L'insta love è imbarazzante perché non appena Wren vede Cross pensa solo a quanto sia figo, anche dopo aver assistito alla morte dello zio...ogni personaggio maschile viene prima visto da un punto di vista estetico e poi ci viene presentato.
Purtroppo per me è bocciato.

Silver Elite by Dani Francis is not the best book I've ever read, but it was exactly what I wanted it to be. It was exciting, it was well paced and I enjoyed reading it. Which is all I really wanted out of it in the first place.

I had a great time with this book! Silver Elite is a solid pick if you're into war camps, secret powers, and a bit of slow-burn romance.

People keep comparing it to Fourth Wing, and I get it. There are similar vibes with the intense training, enemies-turned-something-more, and high-stakes secrecy. But honestly, this one stands on its own!!!
The world is fresh, and the idea of Mods (people with altered abilities living in hiding) really pulled me in. I liked the morally-grey areas around who’s right and wrong, and the tension between the modified and unmodified added a cool layer of intrigue.

I absolutely love books that take place in brutal training programs, and this one checked all the boxes! The lessons, the rivalries, the constant feeling that someone could turn on you at any moment- it kept me turning pages.

That said, I did figure out who Wolf was pretty early, which took some of the suspense out of the romance. Even so, their dynamic worked. The MMC is one of those characters who sees way too much and is just the right amount of intimidating. Their interactions were tense in the best way.

Overall, Silver Elite was a fun, gripping read. If you like secret missions, complicated feelings, and strong heroines trying to survive in a dangerous world, you’ll probably enjoy this as much as I did. I’m curious to see where the series goes next!

Another main character with Cross and Wolf as their names? Coincidence??

In all seriousness, I actually really enjoyed this book for what it was. No where did I feel like this was a Sci-Fi or dystopian novel, but what I did like about it was the romance. It was fun, yearning, and man if I wasn't rooting for her to sleep with the Captain from the literal start. This book was a lot of fun, nothing revolutionary but fun for the romance and spice.

Thank you NetGalley for an eARC!

Heart-pumping, kept me guessing, crazy twist, romantasy! For those who love a romantasy, add this to your tbr pile! It's sexy, fast paced and totally sucks you in.

You know what, I really wanted this to give me all the fourth wing hunger games vibe, It didn’t but that’s because it’s its own book & that’s okay! The dystopian & slow burn was done well in the book & I did like the banter between the characters . It was a fun read & I think I will re read on audio! I do recommend this to my fellow dystopian lovers! Training camp galore!

The comparisons to the Fourth Wing series are certainly apt, but after reading through it, I'd say that Silver Elite stands on its own as a new, exciting romantasy in it's own world. I was intrigued by the moral ambiguity of the idea of altered people, and their somewhat unexplained abilities, and the tension between the altered, and the unaltered. I have to say - I did clock the secret identity of Wolf pretty early on, and that definitely did a lot to lessen the inherent tension between Cross and Wren. Overall, a solid, solid read, and I'm intrigued to see where it goes next.

"Spicy budget Divergent”
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Spice: 🌶️🌶️.5
Audio performance : 🎧🎧🎧🎧

Series: Silver Elite #1
Series Type: Series
Genre: Fantasy
Sub Genre: Dystopian, Fantasy Romance/Romantasy

Tropes:
- Challenge's
- Enemies with benefits
- Forbidden Magic
- Forced Proximity
- Political intrigue
- Jealousy (him)

Other:
- Fantasy Species: Human magic users
- Format: Audible, Digital ARC
- Plot/Character Driven: Both
- Pacing: Medium
- POV: Single POV
- Narration type: 1st person, Audio - single
- Character gender : F/M
- Narrator names : Amanda Dolan
- Comparison titles: Spicy divergent
- Popular boyfriend comparison: FOUR reincarnated

👨‍👧 CHARACTERS
Okay. Let’s talk Cross for a second. The male lead? I wanted to fall in love, but he just didn’t give enough. I needed more tension, more chaos, more oomph. Like sir, where is your backstory? Where is your pain? Where is your depth?? 😩
BUT the female lead Wren!! Kinda iconic. Kinda annoying. She had moments where I wanted to shake her, but ALSO moments where I was like “YES QUEEN DO THAT.” She wasn’t some clueless little bird waiting for a man to save her, she already had the power, the grit, the sass. Was she perfectly written? No. But she was fun, and I respect that.

🌍 WORLD BUILDING & MAGIC
Let’s be real. This book was not here to serve us Throne of Glass vibes or Fourth Wing level worldbuilding. If you squint hard enough, it gave “Divergent’s messy younger cousin.” 💥 Like… it wanted to be dystopian, but it forgot to actually build the dystopia. The vibes were there, the logic? Not so much. Still, I had a good time pretending.

💖 WHAT I LOVED
This book was like a candy-coated fever dream flirty, fun, and just chaotic enough to keep me flipping pages. We NEED more dystopian books back in the rotation and honestly? This could be the beginning of the dystopian girlie renaissance. Did it change my life? No. Did it give me a cute break from high-stakes fantasy politics? YES. And sometimes, that’s the vibe.

💔 WHAT I DIDN’T LOVE
Okay let’s address the TikTok elephant in the room, the hate was LOUD. I tried to block it out, but once I saw the criticisms, I couldn’t unsee them. 😬 And yeah… some of them weren’t wrong. There was a lot of “where is this going?” energy, especially in the romance. I’m worried about the series keeping its spark. I’m hoping the next book proves me wrong, but for now… I’m cautiously curious.

📝 OVERALL THOUGHTS
This isn’t the next big fantasy romance. It’s not going to be studied by the romantasy gods. But it is a fun, good-paced popcorn read. Think: book slump cure, not book soulmate. If you go in expecting vibes over vision, you’ll probably have a good time. Just keep your expectations slightly lowered and you’ll be fine!

4.5/5

This sucked me in from the very start! It definitely gives Fourth Wing and Quicksilver vibes in the best way. Definitely a must read for romantasy lovers who want a bit of dystopia.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Worlds for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

It's been a hot minute since I picked up a dystopian novel and an even hotter minute since I enjoyed one. This reminded me of the best parts of the Divergent series, but with a more adult theme. Cross was our Four, and Wren was our Tris. Lots of similarities, but lots of differences too. The found family, even when Wren felt like she was betraying her uncle- this may have been my favorite theme throughout the book.

Needless to say, I enjoyed every minute of it and can't wait for the next one.

this one fell flat for me. i was super excited for it, but i just couldn’t keep myself interested enough to actually keep reading the book. I made it about 25% into it

If you liked the war college and romance of Fourth Wing then you will love this. There are no dragons but there is a lot of telepathy and you might meet a secret agent or two.

# Silver Elite
# 5/24/2025 ~ 5/31/2025
# 5.0 / 5.0

This book had me on the edge of my seat with the constant high stakes. The pacing was done well and at no point did I feel like the plot was dragging. It is an enemies to lovers slow burn with plenty of angst.

Wren, the FMC, must keep her secret abilities under wraps to protect herself from being killed. In addition to learning about her powers I also enjoyed learning about the other characters, with a few unexpected twists throughout. The constant tension between the FMC and MMC as well as fear of discovery kept me on edge throughout. The training program aspect was giving me fourth wing vibes, minus the dragons.

I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Honestly I enjoyed this book. I was nervous that it wouldn’t be good based on what I had been hearing on TikTok but I enjoyed it. There were parts that are predictable as they usually are with most romantasy but there was a twist that I didn’t expect. The biggest annoyance I had with this book is that the cursing was just weird. I can see how that might be construed as AI but I feel like it could also just be the author trying to make it seem like a post modern world where god was taken out of everything including cursing. Hellfuck was weird though and distracted me from the story a bit every time I read it. Otherwise I feel like this book is right up there with other popular romantasy books. I don’t understand the hate. I also am looking forward to book two.